PSTN operators yet to submit details of subscribers

[ National ] 2010-04-10
The five public-switched telephone network operators, whose operations were sealed off for suspected illegal VoIP telephony, are yet to submit details of their subscribers to Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission.
The commission shut down the operation of PSTN operator Dhaka Phone on March 15, WorldTel on March 17, RanksTel on March 19, People’s Telecom on March 21 and National Phone on 23 for their suspected involvement in illegal call termination through voice over internet protocol.
After reopening on March 23, the commission sealed off the switch rooms of private landline operators RanksTel and Dhaka Phone again on March 24 for their failure to provide lists of their authentic subscribers.
Thousands of subscribers of the PSTN operators faced problems because of the commission’s strict move.
According to BTRC, five of the 13 PSTN operators in Bangladesh had more than 5.5 lakh subscribers, out of a total 17,18,675, until the end of February.
RanksTel had 3,00,782 subscribers, People’s Telecom 16,163, Dhaka Phone 77,765, National Telecom 1,38,266 and WorldTel 14,261 subscribers.
Meanwhile, the Employees’ Association of PSTN operators of Bangladesh, a platform of 3,000 employees, on Tuesday demanded that the government should allow the five operators to reopen their networks on ‘humanitarian grounds’.
When approached, the commission chairman, Zia Ahmed, told New Age on Friday that the landline operators had failed to provide the commission the lists of authentic subscribers with evidences.
‘The BTRC cannot allow the companies to resume operation on condition until the commission should be provided with lists of their authentic subscribers,’ he said.
When asked ‘how do you post the subscribers’ lists of the companies in your official site without any verifying’, the chairman said, ‘Till the drive was launched, we were confused on the figures of subscribers. But we have identified the approximate number of subscribers of the operators after monitoring the traffic flows.’
‘We have important subscribers such as hospitals, corporate offices and banks and they are all suffering because of the commission’s high-handedness,’ a senior RanksTel official said.
The commission chairman said legal battle against the operators would continue.
According to the Telecom Act 2001, imprisonment or penalty up to Tk 10 lakh or both, may be awarded if anyone is found involved in such practice.
The commission earlier formed a six-member committee, led by its commissioner Aliwardy Khandaker, to further investigate the operators’ involvement in illegal VoIP business.
The commission chairman said after the recent drive, international call termination through legal channels jumped to more than 5.1 crore minutes a day from three crore minutes before March 14.